Things are hectic lately. We’re about to move, which is always a stressful time. Yes, finally, I am moving to a big city, Toronto. My husband used to live there, so it won’t be too hard adjusting. Despite all my complaining about where I live now, I am going to miss it. My apartment feels so homey, anyone who visits says the same thing. I’m getting sentimental about leaving. There are so many things I’m going to miss, which I will post about later.

This was the first city my husband and I lived in together, where we moved past the newlywed stage of marriage and have come into our own. We have our own routine here, it’s not the most exciting life or in any way cosmopolitan, but we managed. But there’s always a time to move on, I guess. I don’t want to sound like a downer, I am very happy we’re moving. I’m just the type of person who gets attached to places. I lived in the same house until I was 21.

Anyhow, my main point was that things are hectic around here. When things are hectic, shami kebabs are a lifesaver, emergency food, if you will. They freeze so well and last for months. I must admit, the process of making them is somewhat grueling, but it’s not so bad. I try to always have them on hand because it never hurts to serve an extra dish, especially for a last-minute gathering.

I am smiling right now, thinking about in Pakistan there are always unexpected guests, an occasion where shami kebabs come in very handy. This concept would not really fly in North America, people showing up unannounced and expecting to be served something substantial to eat. Someone usually has to rush to the local bakery to get samosas, various biscuits, and puff pastry patties. Then, all the food is placed on a special trolley for guests and then it is rolled out with a teapot covered in a tea cozy and all the bakery goodies. Meanwhile, shami kebabs are frying up in the kitchen because they are ready in the freezer.

Whether or not you eat shami kebabs as an emergency food, they are delicious and one of my all-time favorites. Since we’re going to be moving and there will be little time to cook, we’ll be eating a lot of shami kebabs. All the hard work is worth it, trust me.

Chicken Shami Kebabs

Makes about 25-30 kebabs

Ingredients

for cooking the chicken:

water, as needed

2 1/2 pounds boneless chicken thighs, in large chunks*

1 medium sized red onion, roughly sliced, no need to be precise, just in chunks

First, cook the yellow lentils in plenty of boiling water until soft, after 30-45 minutes. Set aside.

In a large pan, add the chicken, a little oil (if necessary), and all of the items listed (including spices) under the “for cooking the chicken” ingredients. Also, add a little water, about 1/2 a cup. Cook the chicken on medium heat for 15 minutes and then turn the heat to medium low and continue cooking for 45 more minutes, or until the chicken is very tender and all the water has evaporated. You may need to add more water to the pot if it evaporates too quickly, just make sure you cook until the chicken is tender and the onion, garlic, and ginger are very soft. Remove the cinnamon stick, black cardamom, and bay leaves, all the other spices will grind in the food processor.

Once the chicken is cooled, allow it to cool for 15-20 minutes. After it has cooled slightly, transfer it to a large food processor with the cooked lentils and pulse until they are combined. Transfer the chicken and lentil mixture to a large bowl and add in the chopped cilantro, mint, scallions, green chilies, and red onion. It’s time to get messy and crack in the 2 eggs and mix it all together with your hands. Once everything is combined, form the chicken into round kebabs, about 3 inches in diameter. You should end up with about 25-30 kebabs.

Next, in a frying pan heat some oil on medium heat and fry the kebabs until browned on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Cook as many as you want and you can freeze the kebabs that are not fried for up to 3-4 months.

Variation: Instead of adding the egg inside the kebab mixture, before frying you can dip each kebab into beaten egg and fry the kebabs with an egg coating. Another slight variation, is that you can grind all the spices that you cook with the chicken i.e. before adding them to the pot grind them all in a spice grinder and cook the chicken with the ground spices. However, I just grind them in the food processor with the chicken after it has cooked, removing the black cardamom, cinnamon stick, and, bay leaves. I find that the other spices grind easily, as they have become soft after cooking. It’s a personal preference.

To reheat frozen shami kebabs: leave frozen kebabs out at room temperature for 30 minutes and fry as usual.

You can serve the shami kebabs as a snack or a side dish with green chutney /chili garlic sauce or with dal and basmati rice. I also like to eat them with parathas. A popular street food in Pakistan is bun kebab, which is also made with shami kebabs.

*I usually use beef stewing meat, which you can use, just cook the yellow lentils with the beef rather than separately and adjust the cooking time and water according to the meat you use. Beef will take longer. I used chicken thighs here because I had some in my freezer. I imagine you could also use chicken breast as well. Some people also cook the meat and lentils in a pressure cooker, but I don’t have one so I can’t give instructions on that method.

Been looking forward to this recipe since I heard you were planning on posting it! I never realised these could be made from chicken or they could be frozen after doing so – even more incentive to attempt these now.

My nani (grandma) used to make Shami kebabs when I was a kid and I remember sitting around the dining table with my grandad and polishing these off with plenty of ketchup to boot!

Great pics as usual and good luck with the move – remember you can not label things enough and you’ll be fine :)

I LOVE Toronto, seeing as I was born there…and don’t worry, you will find a new place and make it as homey as your current apartment. Imagine, you can eat at Fresh anytime! I think their food is fabulous, almost as fabulous as your kabobs. I have never met a kabob I didn’t like! If I ate meat again I’d insist you send me some of these… :)

I know how attached one feels to be leaving an apartment.Even though you ll take everything with you, but I know what you are talking about.You wont believe when we moved last,I kissed goodbye to the walls of that apartment :) But the feeling fades away as soon as you step into the new house.Living in a big city is always fun.More restaurants, more shopping malls ! Love the first picture.The color of these kebabs is amazing.Great job with them Nadia.I love alll the ingredients u ve used, particularly scallions and mint!
Have a nice weekend!

I am moving too and we’ve eaten a lot of take-out pizza lately! I could have used some of these in my freezer! I love the idea of always being prepared for guests. I would love to have unexpected friends and family pop by for a snack! I am bookmarking this one so I can stock my new freezer!

This looks like something I would have so much fun making for an entire day – and even more fun eating out of the freezer for weeks! I wonder if I could make them as good as the restaurant down the street has. Yum yum

thank you for making the effort to post during such a hectic time! I will def. try these!
question: at what point do you add the spices (coriander, cumin etc) ? do you just add it in food processor w/chicken and lentils? I wasn’t clear on that point….thank you!!

add in all the whole garam masala spices (cumin, coriander, cardamoms, cinnamon, etc) when you are cooking the chicken with the onion, garlic, and ginger. hope this makes sense. just message me if you have any more questions. :)

I am gonna miss Kingston!!!! Especially the walks by the lake, chien noir but def not panchancho LOL. Hope you have the air mattress ready for me in Toronto. I love shami kebabs, Mom always used to send me them when I was in Northwestern. haha

omg-i wrote all about those things in this post, but it was getting toooo long so I’m going to write about them in another post. le chien noir <3
we're getting the custom bed made for you-i mean custom sofa with a sofa bed-LOL. :)

Mmmmmm.. Nadia. I would invite myself over, if you were nearer :-) One of my favorite things and I have wonderful memories of my grandma making this ever so often just for me. She would make with goat meat tho.

I do not like change either, but as fate had it, we moved innumerable times. Hope you have it easy. settling down is never fun.

From what I read, Toronto is a very interesting city; so you will love it, once the pain of moving gets old. As for these kebabs I was not ware of their existence but am glad you made them so I can try them.the seasonings remind me a bit of falafel.

Thanks for this recipe. I just tried this recipe and it turns out I left out the daal but the kababs turned out amazing. The recipe was really quick and easy. Next time I’ll try it with the daal. I have a feeling I’ll be making a lot of these:)

Oh I think most girls are like that? I could hate to live my apartment as well even though I sometimes get desperate to move else where country wise. Every single thing in a home is memory. I always tell M I will carry everything where ever I go. Just recently we were discussing, if we move countries, I asked him innocently ” It would be hard moving my props” Thanks for the shout out my friend. I love shami kebab and yours look PURFECT!

Your kebabs look wonderful, Nadia. I wouldn’t mind having these in the freezer for those long days. I get quite attached to places, too, so I understand the mixed feelings you have about moving. But I bet the move will bring about lots of new things and the excitement of making new memories will override your sentimental feelings. I wish you well on the move!

These look wonderful!
Cookin’ Canuck & I would love if you linked up to 3 of your Kebab recipes into this weeks Get Grillin’ round up. The recipes can be anything & don’t need to be grilled. This and any 2 others would be perfect. http://su.pr/1BZGKK